Cutler Investment Counsel LLC Boosts Holdings in Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX)

Cutler Investment Counsel LLC grew its holdings in shares of Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX) by 2.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 12,842 shares of the coffee company’s stock after acquiring an additional 258 shares during the quarter. Cutler Investment Counsel LLC’s holdings in Starbucks were worth $1,233,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Cerity Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Starbucks by 481.9% during the fourth quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 1,547,411 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $148,567,000 after acquiring an additional 1,281,471 shares in the last quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of Starbucks by 15.4% in the third quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC now owns 56,939 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $5,197,000 after buying an additional 7,619 shares during the period. Tyche Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Starbucks in the fourth quarter worth $794,000. Insigneo Advisory Services LLC increased its stake in shares of Starbucks by 60.6% in the third quarter. Insigneo Advisory Services LLC now owns 9,464 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $864,000 after buying an additional 3,570 shares during the period. Finally, Motco increased its stake in shares of Starbucks by 1.1% in the third quarter. Motco now owns 74,829 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $6,830,000 after buying an additional 811 shares during the period. 72.29% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently commented on the stock. Citigroup decreased their target price on shares of Starbucks from $102.00 to $95.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 12th. Guggenheim cut their price target on shares of Starbucks from $100.00 to $91.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday. Wells Fargo & Company reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $105.00 price target on shares of Starbucks in a report on Monday, April 1st. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of Starbucks from $120.00 to $115.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 12th. Finally, Stephens reiterated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $110.00 price target on shares of Starbucks in a report on Wednesday, January 31st. Fourteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $106.68.

Starbucks Price Performance

Starbucks stock traded up $0.20 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $87.35. The stock had a trading volume of 6,542,834 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,383,759. The company has a market capitalization of $98.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.38, a PEG ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $91.14 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $94.42. Starbucks Co. has a one year low of $84.29 and a one year high of $115.48.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 31st. The coffee company reported $0.90 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.92 by ($0.02). Starbucks had a negative return on equity of 50.76% and a net margin of 11.70%. The firm had revenue of $9.43 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.60 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.75 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Starbucks Co. will post 4.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Starbucks Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 17th will be given a dividend of $0.57 per share. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.61%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 16th. Starbucks’s payout ratio is currently 60.96%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Michael Aaron Conway sold 3,250 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.39, for a total transaction of $277,517.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 81,199 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,933,582.61. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders sold 7,250 shares of company stock valued at $653,183 in the last quarter. 1.98% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Starbucks Profile

Starbucks Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a roaster, marketer, and retailer of coffee worldwide. The company operates through three segments: North America, International, and Channel Development. Its stores offer coffee and tea beverages, roasted whole beans and ground coffees, single serve products, and ready-to-drink beverages; and various food products, such as pastries, breakfast sandwiches, and lunch items.